Daniel I Bernoulli stated that “there is no philosophy which is not found upon knowledge of the phenomena, but to get any profit from this knowledge it is absolutely necessary to be a mathematician”(BrainyQuote). Daniel, a second generation mathematician, learned this valuable lesson, as his father and uncle had before him; mathematics is vital when interpreting the world. While Daniel was succeeded by a laundry list of mathematicians and physics, it is he and the men which preceded him that truly impacted the mathematical world of their time. “That calculus rose to its height of popularity in the eighteenth century,” is attributed to Jacques I and Johann I (Lick, 401). Daniel I’s accomplishments warranted him “the founder of mathematical physics”(Lick, 401). Along with their accomplishments, these men worked side by side with the most gifted and influential mathematical mind of the time. The following will discuss the lives of these three distinguished men, their associates, and their accomplishments.
Jacques Bernoulli I
While, in most recent history, the Bernoulli name is associated with mathematics, in 1654, Jacques I Bernoulli was born into a long line of merchants in Basel, Switzerland (Bernoulli A, 46)(Lick, …show more content…
Also much like his brother, Johann I was pressured by their father into pursuing a career path that held little interest for him (Lick, 403). While their father “was determined to make Johann a merchant,” Johann preferred the study of medicine and literature (Lick, 403). Furthermore, Johann found his true calling, “through the initiating hand of Jacques,” mathematics (Lick, 403). By the age of 18, Johann had received a Master of Arts degree and studies everything from literacy to philosophy. Jacques’ “brilliance in mathematics and science” inspired Johann to dive into the world of science and, most importantly, mathematics (Lick,